Highlights
- The Basilisk is a deadly creature in the Wizarding World, with the ability to kill anyone who looks into its eyes.
- The Basilisk’s origins can be traced back to Ancient Greece, where it was first bred by the dark wizard Herpo the Foul.
- Salazar Slytherin hid a Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets at Hogwarts, which was later released by Tom Riddle and eventually defeated by Harry Potter.
On top of a seemingly infinite number of spells, potions, and accessories available for wizards to learn about and wield within the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, there is also the massive realm of creatures that live across their world. Some creatures are friendly, some mischievous and sneaky, and some are just downright terrifying and dangerous.
One of the most notorious creatures found within the lore of Harry Potter is the King of Serpents itself, the deadly Basilisk. The dangerous reptile is enormous, sporting green scales and piercing yellow eyes that can kill wizards and muggles alike in an instant. They’re illegal to breed in the Wizarding World, although some magical people are still out of their minds enough to try.
The Basilisk only turns up once in the Harry Potter story, but it’s enough to scare the students — and teachers — straight (although not enough to close Hogwarts down, but that’s an entirely different discussion). Besides the ease it has for killing virtually any living thing in its path, the Basilisk is actually a marvel of a creature, with a dense and intriguing history.
The Origins of the Basilisk
The Basilisk can be traced all the way back to sometime in Ancient Greece, first brought to life by the dark wizard Herpo the Foul. According to Newt Scamander in his textbook, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, he states:
The first recorded Basilisk was bred by Herpo the Foul […] who discovered after much experimentation that a chicken egg hatched beneath a toad would produce a gigantic serpent possessed of extraordinarily dangerous powers.
Herpo the Foul was of Parseltongue, meaning he could speak to and understand snakes. So, his main intention with breeding the first Basilisk was to command it and use it as he saw fit. Instead, he managed to open the doors for other wizards to breed their own Basilisks. However, the Basilisk is notoriously uncontrollable, and so many unprepared breeders were eventually killed by their serpents, either because of its deadly venom or from its ability to instantly kill anyone who looks directly into its yellow eyes.
Soon after, it became illegal to breed the deadly reptile, and the Ministry of Magic began cracking down on those harvesting their eggs. Although it was easy to keep hidden — one would simply have to remove the egg from underneath the toad, and it would appear as a normal egg — the breeding ultimately slowed down because of the dangers it brought to the breeders themselves. But there was one infamous wizard who bred his own Basilisk, one that would cause problems even centuries later.
How the Basilisk Ended Up at Hogwarts
Sometime in the tenth century after Hogwarts was established, one of the co-founders, Salazar Slytherin, had built the Chamber of Secrets beneath the school. The Chamber’s purpose was to rid the school of Muggle-born students, as Slytherin was a strong advocate for teaching only pure blood witches and wizards at Hogwarts. Salazar built the Chamber upon his departure from the school, and hid his own female Basilisk inside.
Slytherin made it so that the Chamber could only be opened by his very own heir and by speaking Parseltongue. For a long time, the Chamber of Secrets was only something of a legend, a sort of scare tactic rumor that was meant to keep Muggle-born students frightened in the hallways of Hogwarts.
However, the legend was proved true in the early twentieth century when a student by the name of Tom Riddle — aka Lord Voldemort — opened the Chamber, resulting in the death of a Muggle-born witch named Myrtle. But, the legend was only proven true to Riddle’s knowledge, as he framed Rubeus Hagrid’s Acromantula, Aragog, as the culprit. The Chamber of Secrets, and the Basilisk contained inside, wouldn’t be opened again for almost fifty years.
What Became of the Basilisk?
During Harry Potter’s second year at Hogwarts, the Chamber of Secrets was opened once more, this time by Ginny Weasley, who was under the control of the soul of Tom Riddle via his diary. Once opened, the Basilisk roamed the halls at night, petrifying numerous Muggle-born students (not killing them because they looked into the snake’s eyes indirectly). Harry eventually figured out what the monster was lurking about Hogwarts, and the location of the Chamber, but Tom, being the embodiment of part of Voldemort’s soul, revealed to Harry what his true intention with the Basilisk was:
Killing Mudbloods doesn’t matter to me anymore. For many months now, my new target has been you. How is it that a baby with no extraordinary magical talent was able to defeat the greatest wizard of all time? How did you escape with nothing but a scar while Lord Voldemort’s powers were destroyed? […] Voldemort is my past, present, and future.
This is when Riddle’s true identity is revealed to Harry. Just before summoning the Basilisk to kill Harry, Dumbledore’s phoenix, Fawkes, swoops into the Chamber and drops off the Sorting Hat for Harry. As the Basilisk is released and charges at Harry, Fawkes returns and pecks at its eyes until the Basilisk is blinded. This helped Harry both by allowing him to evade the creature, and by disabling her ability to kill him with her eyes.
Just when the fight against the Basilisk seemed lost, Harry realized that the Sword of Gryffindor was hidden inside the Sorting Hat. Harry then retrieved the weapon, and pierced the Basilisk through the skull, killing it once and for all. Although there aren’t any other known Basilisks to still be alive in the Harry Potter universe, the giant serpents are known to live for nearly one thousand years. Perhaps there is one still out there that was bred long ago, awaiting the opportunity to show itself again and wreak havoc.
Harry Potter
When Harry Potter learns that he is a wizard, he enters a world beyond belief. Aside from continuing his studies at Hogwarts with best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, Harry must also face Voldemort and his dark wizarding forces. The Harry Potter franchise is a worldwide phenomenon, spanning seven books, eight movies, three spinoff movies, a stage play, and numerous video games.
